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HA! HA! (English translation) [1986] (Exile Editions, Toronto, 1986) Publication épuisée. Titre disponible pour le prêt
Traducteur(s) David Homel (Auteur masculin) Nombre de personnages 4 Personnage(s), 2 Femme(s), 2 Homme(s), 4 Acteur(s) |  |
Original - Original en français par Réjean Ducharme sous le titre de Ha ha!… [1978] (Éditions Gallimard, 1982) 18.95$
- Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, 10 mars 1978
- Ce texte a été présenté en lecture publique par le CEAD, les 17, 22 et 27 janvier 1982, respectivement au Théâtre de l’Est
Parisien, au Théâtre les Ateliers de Lyon et au Théâtre Populaire
Romand (La Chaux-de-Fonds, Suisse).
Résumé In a spacious, ultra-modern, and truly ugly apartment, four individuals put on a "show" for themselves and each other, by acting... themselves. There's the lively redhead, Sophie; her pudgy and spineless lover, Roger; Bernard, every bit the spoiled and elegant alcoholic; and Bernard's rather young new bride, Mimi. Their "show" is one of truculent desperation and is, in fact, the biggest spectacle of all; life itself.
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- Décor: Set :
A big apartment, furnished in Furniture Warehouse style. An expensive violet shag rug. A gigantic Tiffany-style lamp, something from Lighting Unlimited.
Ye door is at the back, squarely in the middle. Stage right: the kitchen that leads into the dining-room, and the bathroom door.
Stage left: the to bedrooms doors, one next to the other. Center stage, facing the audience like a television set: the living room Roger's king-sized sofa and tilt-back Lazy-Boy armchair dominate the scene. Between the two: a Sputnik-style stereo with a built-in record player and tape recorder. On the other side of the armchair: a stand-up ashtray topped by little lights that slowly blink on and off at equal intervals.
- Caractéristiques des personnages: SOPHIE: Impassioned. Complicated. A lot of freedom and color in her dress but not much “taste.” Long and thin, a red-head. In her thirties.
ROGER: Sophie's lover. Dressed the way the apartment is decorated. With a handsome moiré bathrobe and two fine furry slippers. Porcine and pale. A prince-of-poets attitude, a leave-me-alone-don't-bother-me attitude. No special language. Speaks well, speaks poorly. Speaks slang, English, Spanish, pig Latin. Awesome, then childish. Flames up and flickers out like the crown of his ashtray. Chomps on a cigar that does not seem to belong in his face: he has such trouble smoking it. Rings on too many fingers. In his forties.
MIMI: Bernard's wife. Very young compared to the others. Pretty much their antithesis: round, passive and reserved in her dress. Sickly sensitivity in mind and body. She prefers a hat and gloves.
BERNARD: Handsome, well dressed. Intelligent, corrupt, end-of-the-line alcoholic. From his father he inherited a garage and an apartment block where Sophie and Roger live, filling in as superintendents. Has given up believing in his inheritance. Apparently still believes in the sentiments he has concocted for Sophie, his boyhood friend.
Extrait « SOPHIE: Now you're going to sit still and you're going to listen to me. (She sits down next to him.) / BERNARD, after an ironic belch: What's the matter, Cupcakes? Whatcha got?… A problem? / SOPHIE: You stoop!… YOU STOOP! / BERNARD: A sek sek sekshual problem… I hope. / SOPHIE: The only one I've got is the one you gave me and it's just like you : insignificant! […] (Continuing as she pushes away Bernard's hand.) Can't you keep your hands off me just for five minutes? I'm talking! I'm talking! / BERNARD: I'm just trying to make you happy. / SOPHIE: Try with your ears for once! I'm talking! / BERNARD, getting up: Talk on! Talk on! I won't get in your way… I'm going… […] / SOPHIE: Wait. You can hassle me in a minute. After I've given you a good excuse… (Lowering her head.) because I've got one… it's all you need… (…) Bernard… aayyyyy… Bernard I quit my job! / BERNARD […]: Ah! ah!… Ha ha!… » Revue de presse "In his plays, Ducharme wages a victorious battle against words; his is a theatre of cruelty and innocence, and it is totally and unabashedly theatrical." Laurent Mailhot, in Théâtre québécois, Bibliothèque québécoise, 1988.
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